In his sexy new romantic drama, director Marco Berger takes the idea of the butterfly effect—which proposes that the tiniest flap of a butterfly’s wings can influence faraway events—and applies it to the amorous destinies of a likable group of friends and relatives.
The film follows two parallel storylines, set in motion by a decision with vastly different romantic and erotic consequences for the protagonists: In one iteration, gorgeous young Romina is brought up as the sister of Germán; in the other, the two are strangers who meet through happenstance.
In both, Germán is besotted but thwarted, either by a rival or by the taboo of incest. There’s another passion longing to take flight in Mariposa, that of the devastatingly handsome Bruno, who sublimates his same-sex attraction in both storylines until situations arise that allow him to express his desire.
His coming-out process, sensually and sensitively depicted, becomes the catalyst for Romina and Germán realizing their own romantic destinies.
Berger is an expert at conveying eroticism—from the sounds of the teeming (and steaming) outdoors to the conflagrations of his characters’ passions—and it’s a great pleasure to watch him play with notions of jealousy and repression, desire and destiny.
The two storylines are brilliantly woven together, an afternoon river outing or a sleepover is rife with amorous potential, whether or not that meddling butterfly has flapped its wings.
